Amnesty International USA Calls on ICE to Release Young Girl and Father

On Thursday night, Latino Rebels received the following media release from Amnesty International USA:

Four years after arriving in the U.S. to seek safety, fourteen-year old Astrid and her father Arturo were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the middle of the night and sent to Berks County Residential Center in Pennsylvania.

Astrid and her father are Indigenous K’iche from Guatemala fleeing violence, insecurity, and systemic marginalization. They were initially detained by ICE when they arrived at the border in 2015, but were released the following day. Since then, the family has lived an ordinary life while pursuing a case of protection to stay in the United States.

“Despite seeking protection, this family was ripped out of their home by armed ICE officials in the middle of the night,” said Naureen Shah, senior director of campaigns at Amnesty International USA. “It defies logic to put a young girl and her father behind bars for trying to rebuild their lives. People fleeing persecution should be treated with compassion. ICE must immediately release Astrid and her father, as well as other families detained for seeking protection.”

Astrid is a student at Easton Area Middle School in Easton, Pennsylvania, where she is now in the eighth grade. She had been planning her quinceañera before she was taken by ICE and brought to Berks. Her birthday wish is to be freed from detention and go back to middle school.

In addition to calling on ICE to release Astrid and Arturo, Amnesty International has asked its seven million members, supporters and activists worldwide to take action on their behalf. The call to action can be found here: https://act.amnestyusa.org/page/21189/action/1